The Prodigal Cousin
by islandpooka
Summary: Have you seen the Tumblr post regarding what would happen if Daisy Dursley got a Hogwarts Letter? So did I. So, I decided to flesh it out into a little novella. COMPLETE!
1. The Unexpected Guest

"Daddy! It's my birthday, Daddy!"

"Yes, poppet," the lumbering figure of Dudley Dursley pats his little girl, though not so little anymore, on the head and sends her into the kitchen. He can hear Anita, his wife of twelve years, coo over Daisy's birthday dress and asks if she wants to celebrate at the zoo today?

Dudley winces, remembering his own eleventh birthday at the zoo. Nearly eaten by a snake thanks to Cousin Harry's…oddity.

It wasn't often that Dudley Dursley thought of his cousin. They had grown up together, it was true, but for all that they may as well have been strangers. The house at Privet Drive had burned to the ground shortly after the strangers in odd clothes had sent the Dursleys away. Drummings had offered Vernon a job in Glasgow shortly thereafter and off they'd moved to Scotland.

Harry hadn't reached out beyond a wedding card and a sympathy card when Vernon had passed. Dudley didn't think Harry actually cared that Vernon Dursley had died of a heart attack, but he had appreciated the sentiment.

Dudley had married Anita and moved back to Little Whinging, putting the stranger parts of his family past behind him. It wasn't until Daisy was a toddler that he really thought about Harry's childhood. She was a mischievous little one, always getting climbing higher than any toddler should be capable of, giving Anita and Dudley daily panic attacks. But it wasn't until she had started screaming true, frightened screeches, that Dudley had remembered. Daisy had gotten locked into the cupboard under the stairs at Number Eleven Lilac Drive that Dudley recalled the panicked cries of Harry when he'd first been put under the stairs and found a spider on his pillow.

"Da-da-da-da-da!" Daisy had sobbed.

"I've got you, poppet. It's okay," he said, bouncing her against his chest, his own heart still racing.

"Scawy," she cried.

"I know, poppet," he had said, his heart suddenly breaking for another child who was the same age the first time they were locked inside the scary cupboard.

That was the day Dudley had acknowledged that Harry Potter had a perfectly valid reason to never speak to a Dursley again, ignoring the fact that his parents had no desire to see him, or "his kind" again.

So, when Harry Potter popped into his mind on his daughter's eleventh birthday, Dudley shook it off and instead went to see how big Daisy's eyes would get over her presents.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

His ears were ringing, but his smile was wide. Daisy was going on about the elephants and tigers and her favorite: the Snowy Owl while Poppy, their youngest, nodded along.

"Wasn't it the prettiest birdy ever, Daddy?"

"Absolutely, poppet," he said fondly.

"Can I get one as a pet?"

"Absolutely not," Anita said with a laugh. "People don't just own owls!"

"My cousin did," Dudley said, absentmindedly.

The abrupt silence made him realize his mistake.

As far as his family knew, he had no family beside his mother. His father and Aunt Marge had died quite close to each other, and Harry didn't come to call. His parents had never taken any photos of Harry so it was quite possible to pretend that Dudley had grown up alone on Privet Drive.

"I didn't know you had a cousin, Daddy! What's his name?"

Poppy looked up with the soulful blue eyes, deeper than her grandfather's had been.

"Harry," he said softly. "Harry Potter."

A knock sliced through the silence of the house as his wife and children came to terms with the revelation that he had another family member.

"I'll get it!" trilled Daisy, making a bee-line for the door. Anita followed, but the usual chatter that accompanied an open door was absent. Dudley made his way to the front and saw the problem immediately.

There was a stern looking woman with spectacles perched delicately on her nose standing on the doorstep. It was not her visage that had shocked his family into silence, however. No, they were struck dumb by her manner of dress. She wore a long emerald cloak with a tartan scarf and a strange pointy hat adorned with a pheasant feather.

"My name is Minerva McGonagall," she said in a crisp Scots accent. "And I am the Headmistress of-"

"Hogwarts." Dudley said, dumbfounded.

"Aye," she said with a twinkle in her gaze.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

Professor McGonagall sat upon the wingback armchair and told Dudley and Anita that Daisy was special. Magical. Anita would have laughed except that her husband looked deadly serious, if mildly terrified.

"It's safe then?" he blurted. "Your world? It's safe now, I take it."

"It is," Professor McGonagall said.

"Why are you not panicking?" Anita asked, her voice slightly shrill. "This woman comes into our home and says our Daisy can do magic and is a witch, and you're sitting there like this woman is suggesting she study Algebra instead of spells?!"

"It's, ah, my cousin."

"The mystery cousin who owned an owl?"

Professor McGonagall snorted delicately.

"Ah, yeah. That's the one."

"That.. Henry Plotter?"

"Harry Potter," the Headmistress corrected.

Anita and Dudley both turn to look at her.

"Do you know Harry, then?" asked Dudley.

"I do," she said.

"D'you know where he lives?"

The sturdy Scotswoman let just a hint of surprise register on her face before her unflappable mask slipped back on.

"I do. He'd likely not mind the visit, if you're interested. Especially considering-" she looked over at Daisy who was pouring over her letter as through it held the answers to life.

"Is it nearby?"


	2. Taking a Trip Down Memory Lane

Minerva McGonagall wasn't a woman easily surprised. In fact, after seven years of Mauraders and seven years of watching Harry Potter drag Weasley and Granger into his scrapes, Merlin! After surviving the _Weasley twins_ , Minerva McGonagall was certain she was never going to be surprised again.

And yet, she was.

She remembered the first day she'd ever seen Dudley Dursley. An angry, obnoxious child kicking his mother as she dragged him up the street, screaming for sweeties. She was certain this family would destroy the best bits of James and Lily in young Harry, but they hadn't. At least once a year, Minerva had visited Little Whinging. She'd seen the awful way they had treated Harry; the way this boy, now a man, had treated Harry.

Now, he stood before her looking determined, though contrite and nervous too, as he asked to see his cousin.

"Well," she said trimly. "He's not too terribly far. There's a wizarding village not far from here. Rowenan Terra. I suppose you have a vehicle?"

Dudley nodded as Daisy immediately began to beg to come along. Anita looked at him worriedly, but he patted her on the hand.

"My cousin was a good bloke," he reassured her. "If this, ah, Headmistress says it's safe, I trust her. Besides, a car is the safest way I can imagine traveling with one of her kind."

Inwardly, Dudley cringed at his verbiage. He could almost hear his father grumping over the term and his mother calling his aunt a freak.

"How else would they travel?" Anita asked, looking perplexed.

"There's something about fireplaces," Dudley said, shrugging. "And Harry had a broom so I'd assume he rode it. Certainly never used it to clean."

Anita's eyes bugged a bit as Daisy squealed in delight.

"I CAN RIDE A BROOMSTICK LIKE A REAL WITCH?!"

"You are a real witch," Professor McGonagall assured her.

Dudley looked down at his daughter and realized that there was one person in his life that could answer every question his little flower had. It would be silly to deny her access to him.

Truth be told, Dudley had suspected that Daisy was something more, between her ability to somehow climb up every piece of furniture, to never get water in her eyes even when she splashed like mad in the tub, and how her peas would disappear from her plate around age eight when she decided she hated them. Yes, Dudley had suspected, but he didn't know how to reach out to Harry, and was quite certain that Harry would never want to hear from him.

There was no getting around it now, however. His daughter was a wi-, no. He couldn't even think it. His daughter was special and he was going to make sure she had access to someone who would make sense of it all for her.

"Alright, poppet. But you're sitting in the rear with your sister."

Another squeal pierced his ears.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

The drive to Rowa-whats-it really wasn't terrible, only a half an hour or so.

In the end, the Headmistress had decided it would be best if Dudley visited his cousin without her, and provided directions for him on a bit of parchment. Poppy had asked why she used such funny paper, and the Headmistress had merely harrumphed and touched her wand to it to create the map.

Dudley felt his body clench at the site of the piece of wood. Harry had gotten his revenge on Dudley, surely. Now, he was terrified of sticks.

The house was, well, normal looking. Larger than most, but there was nothing strange about it. It was made of a warm stone, with gables and red window shutters and a white front door.

"Well?" asked Daisy from the backseat. "Let's go! I want to meet Cousin Harry!"

Poppy shrieked and pointed at the front garden. A gnarled, squat creature ran from one rose bush to another, followed by two more. Strange, ugly little creatures they were.

Anita gasped.

Daisy crowed in delight.

"LOOK AT THE LITTLE MEN!"

As Daisy wrestled with the door, Dudley reminded himself that Harry was as grown as he himself was and wouldn't surround his house with anything dangerous.

He hoped.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

"Daddy, are you going to open the door?"

They'd been standing on the doorstep for a good minute, and Dudley was fidgeting with a coin in his pocket.

"Dudley?" Anita asked softly.

He shook himself and knocked on the door.

There were shouts coming from inside; children if Dudley had to guess. The noise increased drastically as the door opened.

A slouchy shouldered boy with shockingly turquoise hair stood before them and arched an eyebrow.

"AUNT GINNY!" he bellowed over his shoulder and waved them into the foyer.

The house was...lovely. Decorated tastefully with the usual signs of children: a baby doll lay across a sofa, a skateboard leaned against the wall, and maths books strewn on a coffee table. It was, Dudley thought, not terribly dissimilar to his own home.

While Dudley took in the house, Daisy was staring wide eyed at the young man's brightly coloured hair. He looked back at her squeal of delight just in time to see his hair turn bubblegum pink.

"Teddy! You promised you'd practice the sloth grip with us!" accused a girl with vivid red hair, running down the stairs. A boy that looked to be about Daisy's age trailed after her, thick brown curls atop his head.

"Lily, please don't shout," a woman, Dudley assumed her to be the mysterious Aunt Ginny, came in from the rear of the house. She had a wand in her hair and Dudley did his best not to stare.

"Please, Teddy," the little girl made a pair of puppy dog eyes that could rival his Poppy's up at the teenager, Teddy apparently.

Teddy grinned down at her, changed his hair to a vivid red to match her own, and grabbed a broom from a closet.

"No higher than the treetops, dear!" the presumed Aunt Ginny said after them as the three children ran down the hall.

"I'm dreadfully sorry," she said, laughing. "I'm Ginny Potter, and you are?"

"Dudley?"

Harry Potter had arrived.


	3. Something of a Shock

Harry appeared on the stairs, black hair still as wild as ever, glasses no longer broken. There was an air about him that Dudley didn't recognize at first: happiness. It occured to Dudley that he'd never seen his cousin truly happy, outside of the mischievous grin that had graced his face while the letters had attacked the house or when he teased Dudley with what he now assumed - hoped - had been nonsense words.

"Hi Harry. It's been a long time."

Harry nodded, and gestured at the red headed woman who had her wand clamped between her teeth as she rewound her hair into a bun, before tucking the slender bit of wood into the mess, holding it in place.

"This is my wife, Ginny. I'd introduce you to the kids, but…" he gestured towards the back of the house. "Quidditch practice."

Dudley wondered what "Quidditch" was.

"This is my wife, Anita, and our girls Daisy and Poppy."

Ginny smiled at them all before popping down to the girls level.

"Flower names like your grandmum and aunt, eh? Lovely."

The girls beamed.

"So, ah, what brings you to visit?" Harry asked.

"Daisy here got a familiar looking letter today from a Headmistress McGonagall." Dudley stated, watching Harry's eyebrows leap up.

"Is that right?"

"It is!" Daisy agreed, finally breaking her silence. "Daddy said that you're a wizard too and can tell me all about Hogwarts and magic and classes and witches and wizards and everything!"

"Harry, aren't you going to introduce me?"

A bushy haired brunette woman walked in from the rear of the house with a smile on her face, wearing jeans and a Jane Austen t-shirt looking blessedly normal.

How many people live here, Dudley wondered to himself as another red head, male this time, walks in.

"Hermione, Ron, this is my cousin. Dudley."

The red haired man scowled at Dudley, but the bushy haired woman immediately walked over, hand outstretched. She introduced herself to Anita and gestured towards the sitting room. Poppy skipped into the room, plopping on a red velvet couch piled with gold pillows. Daisy looked around the room at the odd assortment of items on the mantle and bookshelves.

"You locked Harry in his bedroom and I had to break him out," the ginger, er, Ron, said bluntly.

Harry shot a look at Ron before gesturing to the little ears in the room.

"Ah, yes. My dad didn't handle magic well. I am not my father." The two locked eyes for a moment, before Ron acquiesced with a nod of his head.

Anita still looked confused, but Dudley gave her the standard "we'll discuss this later" look and they turned their attention towards the four adult wizards and witches on the seats across from them.

"Well, I'm sure you must know a little because of Harry, Dudley," Hermione said, smiling. "But Anita, I imagine this is something of a shock, based on your smile?"

Anita immediately blushed, ditching the forced smile she'd been wearing since they walked in the door.

"You musn't blame Dudley, of course. Families aren't supposed to tell anyone about magic, even spouses. My Aunt Lynda still thinks I spent seven years at an academy for girls in Scotland, learning poise along with Maths and Literature."

The magical folk all laughed lightly while Anita did her best to chuckle along with them, though Dudley recognized her panicking laugh quickly enough.

"Daisy, I'm sure you must be bursting with questions so--"

The sounds of children scuffling drifted in through the door before a boy about Daisy's age fell into the sitting room, landing squarely on his behind.

"Hey!" He said, sternly. "Watch it!"

"Al, dear," Harry's wife - Ginny, Dudley reminded himself - called, "Come here a moment."

The boy, who looked like Harry but with tamer hair, walked over and stared at the Dursleys.

"These are your cousins, Daisy and Poppy. Why don't you take them outside with you for a bit. Show Daisy the broomsticks."

At Anita's look of panic, Ginny amended, "No flying though. She'll have to learn slowly with your dad, just like you did."

Daisy and Poppy raced off the couch, nearly bowling Al - Albert, Dudley supposed - over in their attempt to see magical broomsticks.

"Now," said Hermione. "I'm sure you have lots of questions."

The next hour was spent with Dudley and Anita asking questions about where to shop, how to pay for wizarding items, what Daisy would learn at school, and what was expected from them as non-magical - Muggle, Dudley corrected with an internal grimace - parents.

"They don't… give children tails do they?" Dudley asks, remembering the horror of having to go to a specialty hospital to remove the evidence of his run-in with the gigantic man who had taken Harry that night on the island.

"Heaven's no!" Hermione assured them quickly.

Dudley thought he heard the red-haired man mutter something about a ferret, but he was hushed by Ginny, who he learned was the man's sister.

"Your Daisy will be quite safe. My Rose will be off to Hogwarts in September, along with James and Albus, so Daisy will have some friends there. You've got months to prepare yourselves and for her to get to know the kids."

"So, this diagonal place," Dudley said, now looking at Harry.

"Diagon Alley," Harry corrected.

"Yes, that one. Did you have to buy your school books and things there?"

"Of course. That's where all of us had to go."

"Well, how did you do it?"

Ginny looked at him, puzzled. "We told you. I know it's probably tough to imagine, but you go through the Leaky Cauldron, tap the bricks, an-"

"No, I understand that. At least I will. I mean, how did you buy your things? Mum and dad didn't give you a penny for it. Was there a welfare program for students like you?"

Ron guffawed and Hermione, who Dudley had determined was his wife, frowned at him.

"Is it a socialist style world then? You said we needed money, but was it just given in the past?"

"Blimey, no," said Ron, talking over Harry who was trying to shush him. "Harry was the heir to the Potter fortune. His grandad created a good dozen potions that are all in high demand these days."

Dudley looked at Harry, puzzled.

"Harry's grandfather was, for lack of a better comparison, like the founder of wizarding Richard Branson. His company produces a number of popular potions like Sleak-ease Hair Potion and Skele-gro, which grows back broken bones."

Dudley stared at Harry as if he had suddenly grown another head.

"And you knew this?"

"Once I went to Gringotts with Hagrid, yes." Harry said, noting Dudley's shudder at the gamekeeper's name.

"Mum and dad always said your parents were lazy good for nothings who didn't work."

"They didn't have to," Harry said with a shrug. "They probably would have if Voldemort hadn't been around and trying to find them, but…"

Dudley nodded, trying to align all of his childhood beliefs with what he was learning now.

While Dudley struggled to take all of it in, Anita had calmed significantly and was asking questions now about school subjects. She wanted to know about Maths - Dudley made a point to look up Arithmancy later, - Science - same went for Herbology, - and physical education.

"What is Quidditch?" Dudley finally asked.

Harry, Ginny, and Ron all broke into wide grins while Hermione groaned.

"Come see."


	4. Birthdays with Weasleys

That Summer was spent visiting the Potters frequently. They had dinner each Friday, alternating hosting duties between Ginny and Anita, and had even joined the Weasley family for one of their famous Sunday luncheons. This one, Hermione promised, would be quite the event since it was to celebrate Harry's birthday. The sea of red heads almost had Dudley turning the car around, but Daisy's begging had him agreeing to walk into the throng.

The strangest thing for Dudley and Anita was what Harry had told them were "Muggle-repelling wards". The Burrow, according to the sign, had appeared to be a small, dilapidated farmhouse from the road. Dudley had commented on its abandoned appearance whilst Daisy had laughed and said she thought the tall building was wonderful. She and Poppy had bickered back and forth over the size of the house whilst Dudley felt himself feel more and more ill as he pulled closer. It wasn't until he crossed through the open gate that the feeling of dread eased up and he could see the tall house Daisy had seen.

There was much more to magic than his parents had ever said. Dudley had long ago come to the realization that, despite his mother's proximity to a witch growing up, she had shut her eyes, and ears, to all information regarding the wizarding world.

Petunia had nearly fainted when Daisy announced that she was going to Hogwarts over dinner.

"Grandmama! You'll never believe it, but I'm going to be a Legacy!"

"Mayfield? Oh that's wonderful, darling!" Petunia had said, smiling brilliantly at her granddaughter.

"No! I'm going to Cousin Harry's and Great-Aunt Lily's school!"

Petunia's eyes had grown wide and she fainted, knocking over a tray of mini gherkins in the process.

Dudley had scooped his mother up and placed her on a bench in the solarium in back of the house. She woke up confused, but then her eyes widened again and she opened her mouth to speak.

"No," Dudley had said, his tone brooking no argument. "My little girl is magic. Something in the genes from you, apparently. I will not make her feel like a freak, and neither will her grandmother. You are going to be excited, you are going to be supportive, and you are not going to look at her like you did him."

Petunia had closed her mouth with snap and nodded, still looking a bit in shock. Dudley didn't blame her for that, he was still in shock himself. After three visits with Harry, however, he was less frightened of the magical world than he had been. The things they could do were bizarre, but they were also wonderful, not that Dudley would admit that to Harry.

Petunia had then walked into the kitchen and began preparing dinner and asking Daisy about her new education plans.

To her credit, she only winced a few times.

Now, Dudley found himself wincing at the thought of entering this magical gathering of what looked to be dozens of gingers.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

"DAISY! POPPY!" Harry's little girl, Lily, ran out to greet them and drag the girls off to the back garden where Dudley could see some of the older children tossing a red ball - Keffle, he thought - to one another while riding their brooms.

"Only ride the trainer one, Daisy!" Anita yelled after them. It was strange that this was their new normal, Dudley thought. He never imagined his little girls on broomsticks, nevermind that the trainer broom couldn't go more than six feet high. It was unbelievable.

"You must be Dudley," a pleasantly plump woman, her own red locks shot through with silver, came to greet them as he and Anita walked in the door. "I'm Molly Weasley. You'll meet the rest of the brood, and don't worry about remembering all the names on your first day, but I just wanted to see if you'd be alright with cottage pies?"

"That would be lovely, Molly. I'm Anita."

With his wife handling pleasantries with the hostess, Dudley made his way through the throng to find Harry. Luckily, his cousin's black locks stood out like a sore thumb amongst the red and blondes.

"Duds! You made it!" Harry clapped him on the back and began the introductions.

There seemed to be a shocking ratio of men to women in the Weasley family, including a man Dudley could only describe as political and a bit more proper than the rest, a longer haired burly brother who looked like a cage fighter, and an almost feral looking man with terrible scars who had managed to marry the most shockingly beautiful woman Dudley had ever seen. He was drawn to her like he'd never been drawn to anyone before. He had to spend more time with her. See her. Touch her.

"Dudley!" Ginny shouted, breaking his pursuit of the Frenchwoman. Dudley looked at his cousin-in-law, befuddled.

"She's part Veela. You'll get used to it, just keep your wife from seeing your reaction, eh?" She laughed.

Dudley shook his head, trying to focus on Anita and his girls, whom he loved very, very much. He made it a point to avoid looking in the blonde woman's direction. He was quite happy in his marriage and wasn't going to let some Frenchie voodoo magic ruin that.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

The cake hovered over a silver tray, a big gold ball with silvery wings sticking out that Dudley recognized from the family quidditch games. A stitch, he believed.

"Now, blow out the candles, dear!" Mrs. Weasley instructed, once the birthday song was complete.

"Best if you step back a bit, mate. You're in for a treat," promised one of the brothers, the one with an ear missing. Harry had warned him about this brother in particular, reminding Dudley for an unfortunate encounter with a bit of toffee. Dudley stumbled backward quickly, his eyes never leaving the cake.

With a quick puff, Harry blew out the candles, which sent the golden cake whizzing off like a real stitch, higher and higher before bursting into pieces.

Mrs. Weasley's roar of "GEORGE!" was cut short as plates magically appeared in front of all of the guests with pieces falling neatly upon them.

All except one.

"Well played, George," chuckled Harry, attempting to wipe the buttercream from his glasses. Bits of sponge cake dropped from his hair, which was now a mess of white and gold.

"Thinking 'bout opening a patisserie now that the candy line is set. Give ol' Priscilla's Pasties a run for their money." The one-eared brother looked both proud and mischievous. Dudley had seen a similar look on his eldest daughter's face in recent weeks and was, he believed, rightfully concerned.

"Right then," said Mrs. Weasley, walking over with Anita in tow. "About our visit to the Alley next week…"

 ** _A/N_ : **_Thank you, so much, to everyone who has shown interest in this story, especially Clare, whose motivation is wonderful and name is perfection. I'm going to continue to follow the Tumblr post as closely as I can, but may add more points of view than just Dudley. Is there anyone you would like to hear from?_ _As always, feedback and reviews are my greatest motivators. I am not using a beta, so if you notice something wrong in my grammar or spelling, shoot me a PM and I'll set it straight._ _Thanks! ~Pooka_


	5. Alley Adventures

Diagon Alley was both exactly the same and wildly different from Dudley's previous experiences of school shopping. Parents called after children who were plastered to the windows of chocolatiers, ice cream parlors, and joke stores, students-to-be begged for "just five minutes!" in pet shops, mothers dragged their whinging boys into the clothing stores for uniforms: it was startlingly familiar except that children wanted owls and toads instead of puppies, brooms instead of bicycles, and acid pops instead of lemon drops.

"Alright, we'll get books first, since everyone will need those for their year. Then Daisy, Albus, and Rosie can get their robes and wands whilst James, Teddy, and Victorie get their potion supplies and robes."

Ginny barked out orders like her mother used to, Molly now enjoying doting on the grandchildren too young to attend Hogwarts yet.

"When can we go to Uncle George's shop?" Asked a little Weasley boy, Humphrey or Hugo or something, Dudley thought.

"We'll head there after lunch," Molly assured him, "And Grandpa Arthur and you will go to the Leaky early to make sure we have enough seats for all of us. If you're good, he might even get you a Tongue Tying Lemon Squash or an Otter's Fizzy Orange Juice. Would you like that?"

The mop of red hair moved wildly as the child nodded his agreement.

"Onwards to Flourish and Blotts!" said Harry, fist in the air. His godson, whose hair was a mix of yellow and black today, rolled his eyes, but followed with the rest of the horde.

Anita was going up meet them later as she was stuck at a doctor's appointment. She had promised Daisy she would meet them soon and Poppy had been thrilled to be able to come along as they're was no one to stay home with her.

"Daddy," she said, "Can I go play with Hugo and Lily and Grandmother Molly?"

His eyebrows raised at the title she used for Molly, but nodded his assent. She squealed with joy and skipped off to join her cousins, all of whom were discussing what creatures they would take with them to Hogwarts when they turned eleven.

Dudley furrowed his brow, thinking of his mother and her sister and the magical gene that had been passed to one but not the other. He shook his head. _Best not to borrow trouble_ , he thought before following the horde towards a bookstore with a large carved quill above the entrance.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

Try as he might to appear unaffected by the magical stores, Dudley couldn't deny to himself that it was all, well, fantastic.

There were hairy books that were kept in cages, which he noticed Harry and Ron glared at, books that sang if you touched their spines, books that made him giddy to be near, and monstrous dusty tomes that looked as through they belonged in Cambridge.

Daisy picked up books on plants and spells and transfiguration and potions, then they went off to a place called Ollivander's which boasted an established date in a three digit year, which Dudley had a hard time believing until he walked inside. The store was chockabock full of small long boxes from floor to the ceiling. A man as old as Methuselah greeted them with an especially hearty greeting to Harry, though Dudley had come to expect that after spending the morning with his cousin.

Harry was apparently something of a celebrity, Dudley figured. Likely to do with being rich as Croesus.

Mr. Ollivander beckoned Daisy over and began to hand her wands.

"This one, is Elm, 12 ", supple, dragon heartstring core," he said in a raspy voice, handing her a beautifully carved wand with little lines and dots all over. Daisy gave it a wave and a book shot off of a shelf, making Anita jump.

"No, no, no," the old man muttered, "perhaps, maybe. Yes, try this. Vinewood, dragon heartstring, pliable, excellent for charms work," as he handed over a wand with a delicately curved handle.

This time, Daisy caused Harry's glasses to crack. Both Harry and Daisy yelped before Ginny laughed and mended his glasses.

 _That explains how his glasses were always pristine after he started school_ , thought Dudley, before chastising himself for being the reason his cousin's glasses were always in such poor repair.

"Perhaps, this? Yes, yes, yes, try this, my dear," Mr. Ollivander passed Daisy a new wand, smooth with a handle that looked to be covered in carved feathers accented with flecks of gold. "Willow, supple, 11 inches even, unicorn hair. Excellent all-around wand, though best for transfiguration."

Daisy's hair rose on end as a golden glow emitted from the tip of the wand. Her eyes widened and her face split into a grin.

"This is it, isn't it?!" she cried.

"Yes, yes it is," said Mr. Ollivander, taking the wand and placing it back in the box. He wrapped it for purchase and chatted to Harry, but Dudley and Anita weren't paying attention.

"Wow," Anita whispered, her head leaning on his shoulder. "She's really magical, isn't she."

"She really is," said Dudley, not thinking of her abilities but rather the smile on his little girl's face. Magical indeed.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

Once Daisy had everything on her Hogwarts list, and the family had enjoyed a hearty meal of cornish pasties and roast chicken, they made their way to a brightly colored shop with a red-headed head lifting and dropping a top hat over a rabbit that would appear and disappear each time.

"Uncle George! Uncle George!" Lily cried as they made their way into the crowded shop. Dudley and Anita scanned the shelves as intensely as their children, though Dudley blanched when he saw a display of Skiving Snackboxes. He pulled Daisy towards a group of pink and purple fluffy critters, hoping that she hadn't seen the Puking Pastilles and Ton Tongue Toffees.

Anita just barely swept Poppy away before she accepted George's offer to sample Hiccuping Honeycomb. Molly could be heard scolding her son as they made their way to the second floor.

There, they found little spinning toys and mechanical dragons that walked and blew fire. Poppy was mesmerized by everything around them.

"Mummy, can I have a Piggy Puff?"

"There called PYGmy Puffs!" Lily giggled at Poppy.

"I can call mine Piggy. Then it _will_ be a Piggy Puff."

"Can I get a Kill-Me Puff?" Albus grumbled. He skipped away lightly as the girls both turned to swat him, off to find a quiet corner as was his usual hiding spot. Daisy meandered over and giggled as Lily and Poppy made gagging noises over the love potions then made an "icky" face as well.

 _Thank God for small favors_ , thought Dudley. _I don't think I could handle her liking boys as well as being magic._

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

After the girls were tucked in, exhausted from their day in the Alley, Anita grabbed out the nice wine glasses, beautiful Waterfords her parents had bought them for the wedding, and cracked open a bottle of wine.

"What's the occasion, 'Nita?"

"Were you not there today?" she asked, wide eyed with panic that he'd seen on his mother's face a hundred times before. "There were biting books and flying broomsticks and, and, and…"

"Yes, yes," said Dudley, taking the bottle from her and pouring two glasses. "Quite a lot to take in, to be sure."

"It's all real." She continued, as though she hadn't heard him. "It's all so real. I knew it, but seeing it… I mean, we've seen it at your cousin's and his friends' but _that_? There were so many of them! And they all acted like it was perfectly _normal_."

"Hey!" He said, taking her shoulders firmly. "Yes, it's wild. It's unbelievable. I was terrified of it as a child, and to be completely honest, it still makes me a bit weak in the knees now. But this is our daughter. Our _child_. This is _her_ world now. And you and I will continue to support her in this as we would if she had been non-magical. I will not let our child's abilities shake this family, and neither will you."

His gaze burned into her eyes and she saw that strength that made her fall in love the first time.

"Yes," she said, with a large swallow of wine. "Yes, of course."

"Feeling better?" he asked, after a few more sips from her glass.

Anita didn't get the chance to answer because, at that moment, there was a loud tapping on the glass of the kitchen window.

Standing, Anita made her way over to the window and opened it. In hopped a small, fidgety owl and a much larger barn owl, which dropped a note from its beak.

"Dear Daisy,

I hope you enjoy Aurelius, he can carry your mail to your parents. His little friend is Pygmalion, who is quite fond of little sisters. We hope you both enjoy.

Love,

Cousin Harry and Aunt Ginny"

"RUDDY! OWLS!" Dudley bellowed as Pygmalion left a less pleasant gift on the counter.

 **A/N: Hi guys! This chapter is especially special as it is a (unfortunately late at this point) birthday gift for the ever motivational Clare. Thank you my dear for keeping me on task and updated. Happy, happy birthday!**

 **As always, comments and reviews are greatly appreciated. Thank you all for reading!**


	6. September First

"Daddy, I'm scared."

Poppy was holding tightly to her father's hands as she watched Cousin Harry and Ginny go through what appeared to be a solid brick wall at King's Cross Station.

Dudley happened to agree with his youngest, but parents were supposed to be invincible in their children's eyes, right? So, he would tuck that fear right down between his kidneys and put on a brave face for her.

"Nothing to be frightened of, dearest," he said, ruffling her blonde pigtails. "If your cousins can do it, we can too."

And so they did. Dudley, Anita, Daisy, and Poppy all walked through together, surrounding Daisy's trolley loaded down with a large trunk and Aurelius' brass cage. The other side of the platform appeared out of nowhere, much like that alley. A crimson engine, billowing steam, proudly awaited the students to board and Poppy's eyes were wide at the sight.

"Daddy, I want to go to Hogwarts, too." She said, in an awed voice.

"And leave us, too?" he said to her, clutching his heart. "What would I do with both of my girls gone for nearly all of the year?"

"You'd have Mummy!" she giggled.

"We'll have to see, dearest."

That little lick of uncertainty flickered in his belly, remembering the animosity between his mother and Harry's, but he tamped it down once more to focus on Daisy searching for the family.

"I want to go with Jamie and Al." Lily whinged to her father, his hair looking even more wild than usual, likely due to wrangling his children around the station. Dudley felt exactly the same.

The fiery red headed girl had been arguing with her father to go since they got out of the cars. Tenacious, that one. Got it from her mother, if Dudley had to guess.

Albus was looking around anxiously, trying to find the rest of the extended Weasley clan, who were lost in the fog of the engine's vapor. No matter though, Ron and Hermione Weasley appeared from the fog, the wife's hair more frizzy than usual thanks to the steamy weather.

While Anita fussed over Daisy's trunk, checking to make sure everything was latched properly, the Potters and Weasleys discussed driving exams and Dudley heard something about Ron confounding someone, which didn't sound pleasant to Dudley's ears. He'd have to ask Harry about it late and hope that Harry didn't do it to him as way of explanation.

"If you're not in Gryffindor, we'll disinherit you," Ron was saying to his little girl, "But no pressure."

"Ron!" his wife scolded, and whapped him on the arm.

Gryffindor was one of the houses, Dudley knew that much. He'd heard of that one and Slithering, but new that there were others. To his knowledge, Harry and his friends had all been in the Gryffindor house together, and his son James was there as well. Hermione had explained all about some hat that put students into the houses, though Dudley had only been able to imagine the wealth of lice that must reside in such a thing. Dudley didn't like lice, not one bit. He'd considered moving when Poppy had brought them home from a slumber party once, but Anita had talked him down from it. He'd been so focused on the possible lice that he'd quite missed the rest of her explanation and hadn't the heart to tell her he hadn't been paying attention.

From what little he did remember, the houses seemed to be based on characteristics of the students as opposed to an even divide of boys and girls into each. Little Albus was terrified of ending up in Slithering, which his brother used to tease him mercilessly. He was standing with Rose and Daisy, glowering at his brother.

The other adults were looking down the platform and Dudley followed their gaze to a tall, pointy faced man with white blonde hair and his perfect miniature with him. His wife was a frail looking woman with a tight clutch on her son's hand.

From Ron's encouragement to Rose to beat the boy in exams, Dudley deduced there was a history there, and not a pleasant one.

The grousing over the pointy man was abruptly drowned out by James' return to the fray telling anyone who would listen that he'd seen his godbrother kissing his cousin. As any good parent knows, showing shock at at that type of proclamation only encourages gossip and spying, so they all remained stoic. James obviously thought this was the news of the century, and Dudley found himself amused at the thought of the ever-changing lad with the lovely blonde girl, but kept his face schooled with the rest of them.

With a whistle of the engine, all of the parents leaned down to give hugs, kisses, and reminders before shooing the children into the train cars. There was much hustle and bustle and then suddenly they were all on board and the train was making its way north.

"Two down," Ginny said, leaning her head on Harry's shoulder.

"Could've been three if you just let me join," said Lily, crossly.

"Two years, darling," Harry said, smoothing her hair.

"Well, are we doing our dinner again this year?" Asked Ron, his stomach rumbling at the thought.

Ginny laughed while Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Yeah," said Harry, "Thanks for the reminder. We did a dinner last year so we'd all be together when James sent his owl with his house on it. You're welcome to join us this year, you three."

He looked at Poppy especially.

"You can bring Pygmalion and send your sister a letter so it's waiting for her in the morning if you'd like."

"I'm calling him Pyg," Poppy said.

"Excellent," said Ginny.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

Dinner that night was simple but delicious: a roast with yorkshire puddings. Anita stared longingly at the dishes that washed themselves while the adults made themselves comfortable with glasses of wine, Butterbeer, and whisky. The children too young to attend were upstairs in Lily's room, suspiciously quiet.

"That was a proper meal, Gin," Ron said, patting his belly. "Might steal a little more in a bit."

"Ron, you ate the last of it during your fifth helping. Move your feet, will you?"

"Oy, Hermione, would you grab me another pudding?"

"No can do, Ronald. I'm eating it."

"What?!"

"Should've gotten it yourself."

Anita giggled at the banter between Ron, his wife and his sister. She had grown up an only child, complete alone unlike Dudley, though Dudley couldn't say his life had varied greatly from hers as Harry was never considered Dudley's equal, like a sibling would have been. They both were enjoying the chance to have a larger family. Dudley enjoyed it significantly more than he thought he would. The only sibling encounters he'd seen were those of his father and his late Aunt Marge. Dudley was quite happy to see that family wasn't simply….that.

"Oh look!" Anita cried, looking at the open window. There, lit by the light of the moon, was the beautiful form of Aurelius flying silently towards them. He had a scroll of parchment clasped in his talons and dropped it neatly in Ginny's hand as he flew through the wide window. Dudley wondered if the window was that wide purely for the convenience of owl post.

Probably.

"Quite early this year. Guess ol' Minnie's speeches aren't as wordy as Dumbledore's were," Ron commented, taking another swig of his whisky.

"Well, not like she has to warn them about three headed dogs guarding weapons that could bring back a dark lord, now does she? Speeches are all, 'Don't go in the forest, beware of moving staircases, don't make Filch hate you.'" Harry said, off-handedly.

Anita's eyes grew wide and Dudley raised his eyebrows.

"Long story," Harry said, waving their concerns off. "Basically, going to school with me meant you rarely had a normal year, and almost never had finals."

Ron guffawed whilst Hermione frowned.

"Some of us had actually prepared for those exams, you know." She said primly.

"Well, do you want to know the results or not?" Ginny asked, tapping her foot.

A chorus of "yes!" answered her.

"Right then.

Mum,

Cousin Daisy let me use her owl since she wanted to give him a try. We're all well and all of us made it to the feast and none of us ended up in the Whomping Willow, so it's already going better than dad's second year, eh?

Turns out we might have the Sight in the family because Al ended up in Sly-"

There was a loud choking noise from Ron. Hermione patted him on the back until the hacking stopped.

"Honestly, Ron." Harry said. "That hat tried to put me in Slytherin, too. My grandmum was Slytherin, and so was yours if I'm not mistaken. It's not an Azkaban sentence."

Dudley wasn't certain what was so wrong with this Slytherin house, but he was more anxious than ever to find out where Daisy had ended up. Ron had told him that the houses were basically divided into Courageous, Evil, Smart, and Chill. Dudley and Anita had discussed quietly and decided that meant that some crazed founder had decided to put all of the wild, danger seekers together, the conniving get-aheads in their own house, the book worms and study-focused in another, and the laid-back students who weren't into ADHD, ambition, or research obsessive in their own. Ron had mentioned that their house was also right by the kitchens. Dudley personally thought that last house had the right idea, though the Gryffindors sounded like a fun bunch at a party.

"May I please continue, if you're done dying. My son is a Slytherin. We'll get over it. Continuing on…

Al ended up in Slytherin. He's there with Malfoy but seemed happy enough by the end of dinner. Guess I can't tease the snakes anymore. Oh well.

Rosie is with me up in Gryffindor tower, no big surprise there.

Daisy had a longer sorting but ended up in Ravenclaw. Dominique has already taken her under her wing so she'll be well taken care of there."

Dudley and Anita looked anxiously around until Dudley finally said, "So is it the smart house, or the kitchen house?"

Harry laughed.

"Smart house."

"Wonderful!" Dudley cried, feeling a glow of pride in his chest. So what if Daisy hadn't known magic existed before now. So what if he had been terrified of magic up until a few months ago. Some magic hat saw that his little girl was brilliant and put her in the Smart House.

"Shame she already has an owl," Anita was saying to Ginny. "Guess we should have gotten her a raven!"

Ginny laughed.

"Oh, no. The symbol for Ravenclaw isn't a Raven. It's an Eagle."

And this was supposedly the Smart House?! Now Dudley wasn't so sure.

 _ **A/N: Sorry for the long delay! A rotten bug got me down, then I had to play catch up at work. Thank you to all of my new followers, please leave some reviews and let me know what you think so far!**_ _ **~Pooka**_


	7. No Repeating the Past

The letters came consistently. On Mondays, Daisy told them of her adventures around the castle and campus. On Wednesdays, she told them of her lessons in Charms, Herbology, History of Magic, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. On Fridays, they received a summary of her lessons in Transfiguration, Astronomy, Potions, and Transfiguration.

Anita read them with some confusion whilst Dudley began to understand more and more of his childhood. Poppy read the letters until they were worn at the creases.

"Daddy, what's this word?"

"Let me see. Ah, well. It looks like Wing-ardium LEviosa. Says here that it's a lifting charm."

"Whatcha think that does?"

"Lift things."

Antia tsked in the background.

"Ah, I mean, I think you might use it to lift things that might be difficult to lift otherwise."

"Do you think Cousin Harry could show me?"

Dudley sat back. Since the children had gone off to school, their dinners had petered off. Poppy's school and dance classes had started once more, Anita and Dudley had picked up at work, as was usual with the summer hols ended, and the family dinners just hadn't happened. Now, it was nearly mid November and they hadn't seen one another since their dinner together waiting for the sortings.

This couldn't repeat, the separation between Potters and Dursleys, Dudley decided.

"I bet he could, dearest. Why don't you send him a note with Pig and see if they'd like to pop round for dinner?"

"Okay!" she squealed, and ran off to check on the little bird.

She'd grown quite fond of the owl, as had Dudley and Anita once they'd took the time to get acquainted with the spirited beast. Dudley had been seen to complain only on cage cleaning days, mutter over the advantages of being able to spell away the pellets as opposed to cleaning them up manually.

"Sent!" Poppy shouted, running down the stairs doing her best impression of stampeding wildebeests.

"Excellent. Now lets work on your maths."

"Aww, mother…"

Dudley chuckled, leaving Anita to battle over the homework.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

"Now, do you know your role, Poppy?"

"Yes! I will answer the door and ask to take their coats."

"Excellent, darling. And I will escort them to the living room where your father will be waiting to offer refreshments, isn't that right, Dudley?"

Dudley grunted his agreement, remembering his mother preparing similarly with his father and himself for a dinner party that ended spectacularly with Harry dropping a pudding on a woman's head. He'd have to remember to ask Harry what on earth he'd been thinking, pulling that stunt. That was when he was convinced his cousin really was mental. The snake at the zoo could have been the fault of Harry, or perhaps it had simply been a mean snake. But dropping a pudding on an innocent woman? That had just been asking for punishment.

There was a loud knocking at the door.

"I GOT IT!" shouted Poppy, all decorum running out of her head.

"LILY!"

"POPPY!"

The two girls immediately ran off, leaving an amused Harry and Ginny behind.

"Shame they don't get on," Harry chuckled.

"Yeah, completely anti-social, the both of them." Dudley agreed sarcastically.

"Come in, come in," Anita gestured, guiding them into the living room.

When they were all seated with glasses in hand, Dudley surmised that it wasn't much different than any other dinner they'd had with Daisy and Poppy's friends' parents. They talked about the children's lessons, compared notes on what the children told them, discussed their hopes for academics, then moved onto the news and the familial goings-on since they'd last seen each other.

"James is thrilled to have made second string for Quidditch. It's about time they put in back-ups. When Gin and I attended, if we lost the Keeper, we had no goalie for the rest of the game."

Anita and Dudley nodded, too afraid to ask what "losing a Keeper" meant, imagining the worst.

"Albus is settling into Slytherin well, not surprising though. They take care of their own. I only really had one friend in Ravenclaw who was a bit… vague in describing life in their Tower. What's Daisy got to say about it?"

"Well, you had something more than a friend, too." Ginny said, nudging Harry's shoulder with a bright twinkle in her eyes.

"Merlin, no," Harry said, with a long suffering sigh. "We don't talk about her."

Anita raised an eyebrow at Ginny, universal women's speak for "Spill."

"Harry's first crush was on a Ravenclaw. It was a bit dramatic all around, but involved her crying quite a bit when they finally kissed. Needless to say, it didn't work out."

"No. It didn't." Harry said. "Now, what does Daisy have to say about the Ravenclaw Tower?"

"Loves it," Anita smiled. "Apparently there's a library that populates with whatever book the user needs. Some of the older years have told her that there are books that are banned for being too dark, but she hasn't run into any issues getting a book yet."

"And let us hope she never looks for one of those darker books," Harry said, shuddering. "There are somethings that are best left sealed between two covers, never to be read."

Harry rubbed his scar and Dudley squinted at him, as though he could uncover his cousin's secrets by sheer force of will.

"There's a study group that isn't for any particular subject. The students gather and each of them can ask a question. Whomever knows the answer can explain, or they all ponder on it and bring an answer with them the next week if they find one. Daisy really seems to like that they learn about things outside of class that are separate from their coursework. She seems especially fond of theoretical Charms."

"Morgana, she sounds like Hermione, doesn't she?" Ginny laughed. "She was always trying to learn new things, though I believe her knowledge was more book-based than theoretical."

"MUMMY!"

Poppy and Lily came crashing down the stairs.

"Lily made Pyg's cage fly! Also, there's a couple pellets on the floor. But it flew!"

"Wonderful, darling," Ginny exclaimed, giving Lily a big hug. "We'll make a witch of you yet!"

"I… I wonder if I've done any accidental magic." Poppy said, staring at her cousin as she sat on the loveseat.

Ginny coughed, choking on her drink. Anita bit her lip and knelt down before her youngest.

"Not that we've noticed, darling."

"And if you don't, that's okay, too." Harry said, standing up to put his hand on her shoulder. "The world needs magical folk and muggles alike. "Sometimes muggle families will produce a magical child, sometimes a magical family will produce a non-magical child. The non-magical folk who know about the magical world are our greatest allies in the muggle world. You help us stay under the radar, and can help us keep up with the modern age."

"Modern age?" Poppy asked, eyebrows scrunched.

"Did you know, instead of computers or pens and pencils, witches and wizards write with quills?"

"Of course. We had to buy them for Daisy. They look fun."

"They do look fun," Harry agreed, "But you have to constantly dip them to write. It's a much harder process than just using a ball-point pen."

"So, why don't they use ball point pens at Hogwarts?"

"Because the wizarding world is behind the modern age. They still use torches and candles at Hogwarts instead of electric lights."

At this, Poppy's eyes bugged out.

"But… but why? They even had electric lights in Downton Abbey, and that was a hundred years ago!"

"Like I said. They're behind the modern age. That's why we need non-magical advocates: to tell us when we're ridiculously behind on technology."

"I can do that," Poppy said. "No electric lights? No pens? That's silly."

"Agreed," Harry said, hoping that this would be a new start, a way to prevent a repeat of his mother and Aunt Petunia's situation.

Dudley smiled at his cousin, seeing exactly what he was trying to do.

They would get Poppy through this, Hogwarts letter or no.

 **A/n: thank you all for waiting on the slow updates. I'm glad for all of the new follows and favorites. Please, please comment. Your feedback is my motivation!**


	8. First Comes Christmas

"Well, Dudley, what do we do?"

Anita was cradling a glass of sherry in one hand and worrying the fabric of her skirt with the other.

Daisy was due home the following week for the Christmas hols and had asked if they could spend the day after the holiday with the Potters for the Potter-Weasley Boxing Day luncheon and Quidditch match. This wouldn't be an issue, except Dudley's mother always spent the week of Christmas and the New Year with them.

Petunia had obeyed Dudley's demand that she not treat Daisy any differently. While he was certain his mother hadn't overcome a lifetime of mistrust and bitterness in a few short months, Dudley had seen her make the effort to try and overcome her aversion to magic for the sake of her eldest grandchild. There was no special treatment of Poppy nor exclusion of Daisy. Petunia was doing quite well, all things considered.

Dudley wasn't sure that the same would be able to be said if she were to accompany them to the Burrow.

"Perhaps, if we ease her in." Dudley said, finally. "Invite her to dinner with Harry this Friday. Test the waters."

He swirled the brandy in his glass and took a sip.

"If she did go, just imagine her face…"

Anita choked on a snicker, followed by Dudley loosing a few chuckles. A moment of imagining the look on his mother's face when being introduced to the herd of Weasleys had them both guffawing loudly.

"Goodness," Anita cried, dabbing her face with a tissue. "We'd have to take her to a cardiologist first. The gnomes might stop her heart before we even made it up the drive."

Dudley's eyes were streaming as well. "I'm just imagining her talking to Arthur."

Anita lost it again.

"W-w-what is a mag-e-net?" she said, in her best impression, "Why, it's just like magic!"

And that was how a very confused Poppy found her parents draped over one another on the sofa, laughing maniacally.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

Kings Cross Station was the place to be on the day the Hogwarts Express returned to London. Families of all sized bustled about, shouting directions and encouragements, but none were larger or louder than the Weasley-Potter horde.

"Rose, Albus can tie down his own cage, stop hovering!"

"JAMES! Where is he? Harry, I told you not to give it to him."

"TEDDY YOU STOP THAT RIGHT NOW YOUNG MAN, THIS IS A PUBLIC PLACE!"

"Where is Al? He was just here…"

"HUGO, where is that boy? HUGO!"

"AARRGHHHH!!!! JAMES, DON'T DO THAT YOU SNEAKY BAST--"

"LILY!"

Anita looked more entertained than shocked by the cacophonous reunion, further proof that they were becoming less like outsiders with this newly acquired family branch.

"Daisy, my darling!"

There she was, dressed in normal clothes, eyes bright with excitement, running towards her mother's open arms. She'd grown, Dudley noticed, feeling both proud and sad. She was growing into a young lady, quite without his permission.

Poppy squeezed his hand and he glanced down, smiling.

"Are you alright, daddy?"

"Quite. Just glad your sister is home."

Poppy breathed in and let out a happy sigh.

"Me, too."

"Poppy, do you want to see your presents?" Daisy's voice broke through their thoughts.

There was an inhale of excitement, turned into a sigh of exasperation as Anita threw up a hand.

"Absolutely not. First, we'll get trampled here if we don't get a move on. Second, Christmas is close enough that you can wait."

The two girls groaned in unison.

Anita rolled her eyes but smiled at Dudley. It was good to have both of the girls together again.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

It was a nightmare having both girls together again.

"I WANT TO TRY IT!"

"Well you CAN'T!"

"But I want to!!"

"It's against the rules! Besides, you're not even eleven yet! No letter, no wand. That's the rules!"

"But I just want to see if I can make sparkles like you did when holding it!"

"IT'S MINE!"

Dudley was staring into the bottom of a sadly empty teacup wondering if it was acceptable to doctor it up a bit before dinner. Daisy had only been home a few hours and already the sibling fights were starting up again.

His girls got along about as well as most siblings did, he supposed, never having had any himself. However, the older they got, the louder and the meaner the squabbles got. After months of zero squabbles, Dudley had weakened his ability to tune it out.

"Well, they seem to be having fun, eh?" Anita said, poking her head in the front door.

Daisy had requested her favorite pudding and Anita had run out to grab the ingredients while Daisy got settled back into her room. Approximately 2.7 seconds later, the fighting had started.

"Remind me why we decided to have more than one?" Dudley asked her, a long-suffering look on his face.

"Because," his wife said, primly, putting on an apron, "We thought it would be more fun for Daisy than being an only child."

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

Christmas Eve arrived with Petunia sweeping into the house in Little Whinging, filling in the remaining free space under the Christmas tree and giving each of the girls small gifts to open after dinner.

She puttered around the house, blooming as she always did with a brood to feed and an icebox to fill.

Her presence kept the magic talk to a minimum, though Christmas as a whole had seemed to do that on its own after the fight over the wand had settled.

Anita had taken the offending object, popped it in Daisy's bag, and stated that it wasn't to be touched by anyone over the holiday since it was against the rules for anyone to do magic in front of a Muggle like herself.

Petunia kept the kitchen toasty and full of delicious smells, thanking Anita for her attempts to help but refusing all the same. It seemed like the only time she had let up was to watch the girls open their presents.

Both girls had gotten iPods from their grandmother, clothes and books from their parents, and Daisy had gotten them all sweets from Honeydukes, courtesy of a third year who had offered to buy things for the younger students who couldn't yet go to Hogsmeade.

It wasn't until after the Christmas dinner had been served, eaten, and cleared away that Dudley finally bolstered up his courage and gave in to the urgent looks Anita had been shooting him all night.

"Mum?"

"Yes, Dudders?" Petunia was sitting primly, drinking her tea whilst Poppy and Daisy played with their new iPods, earbuds drowning out all adult conversations.

"We've been invited to spend Boxing Day with Harry and his extended family."

Her eyes snapped to his and nearly bore a hole straight through his skull.

"I'm sure they'll be dreadfully upset if you don't make it." Her words dripped with sarcasm.

"They might, at that," Dudley said, eyes narrowing straight back at her. "Harry and Ginny have been kind to our family and while I will admit that their extended family is certainly more boisterous than we are used to, they have helped us understand our Daisy's world better and have welcomed us despite the unfortunate past. You refused to accompany us to the Potters for dinner, but the girls and I will not be missing out on this. Daisy and Poppy deserve to spend time with their extended family over the holidays. If you do not want to join us, you are welcome to stay at home, but you should understand the message you are sending to your granddaughter if you refuse to mingle with her magical relatives."

Anita placed her hand over his and squeezed in encouragement.

The twist in Petunia's face suggested she was remembering the tongue incident, or perhaps the phone incident, or maybe even the stamp incident. The scrunch of her nose suggested that she clearly remembered all three.

"And you have been to one of these...gatherings before?"

"Yes," Anita nodded, "We went for Harry's birthday in July, then again for Samhain."

"Samhain?!" Petunia hissed.

"Yes, mum. Samhain," Dudley said, "It wasn't terribly different from the traditions we saw in Inverness that one year. Shocking at this may be, celebrating witchcraft on Samhain isn't a shock when they practice it daily. They are practicing wizards and witches, just like my Daisy."

His tone brooked no argument, and Petunia looked properly chastened.

"I just…" she sighed heavily. "It's all still so strange to me."

"Yes, well, it shouldn't be. It was your genetics that carried the magic, wasn't it? She is this way because of you. And don't," Dudley put up a hand when Petunia opened her mouth, "I'm not blaming you. I'm not angry about it. I'm merely stating a fact. Your sister was a witch, your nephew is a wizard, and now your granddaughter is a witch as well. Clearly, it's from the Evans line."

Petunia pursed her lips and sipper her tea, grimacing when she realized it had gone cold.

Daisy, having kept her earbuds in but the music off so she could listen in, took this moment to chime in with, "Cousin Harry has this wonderful charm that keeps your tea from going cold. It's a mix between a warming and a stasis charm. Mrs. Hermione came up with it. Mr. Ron never remembers to pour the last of the pot so it keeps it from overbrewing."

Petunia looked down at her granddaughter, flabbergasted.

"You get used to it," Dudley quipped.

"So, are you coming with us to the Burrow, Grammie?"

"The Burrow?" Dudley struggled not to laugh at the look on his mother's face.

"Yeah! It's where Mr. Ron and all of his siblings grew up, including Cousin Ginny. It's brilliant!"

"Well…"

Poppy, who was distracted from her iPod with her sister's wild gesticulating.

"Please say you'll come!" Poppy whined. "The Burrow is my favorite."

With a long suffering sigh, Petunia nodded.

Dudley would not think of her chatting with Arthur. He would not or, God help him, he would spit his tea all over the carpet Anita was so fond of.

 **A/N: I'm awful at updating. I know this. i don't pre write my stories, this one especially since it was a spur of the moment thing. However! Your reviews have kept me motivated to write when I have the time, please keep them coming.**


	9. Then Comes Boxing Day

**A/N: this chapter references the end of book seven. Some of you mentioned your children were reading this with you and I don't want to spoil the story if they don't know what's coming. Enjoy! (more notes at the end)**

The reunion of Harry Potter and his aunt went about as was expected: there were no great apologies or tears or hugs, but the glares and hostilities were absent as well.

"Aunt Petunia," Harry had said, not quite as warmly as he had greeted Dudley all those months ago. Harry had stuck out his hand and Petunia had returned his handshake with the lightest grasp of her fingertips.

Dudley was impressed she resisted the urge to wipe her hands on her skirt, as though magic could be spread as easily as the flu.

They had decided to meet at the Potter's home and drive over together. Dudley's reasoning for this was, if his mother behaved, she could get acquainted with Harry and meet his family without the hubbub of the Weasley clan and they could talk a bit in the car. If his mother didn't behave, he would drive her home, and Anita and the girls could use the fire floozy thing to go to the Burrow whilst he gave his mother a scolding that would make his father proud.

Thus far, it was surprisingly civil. As civil as could be expected.

Dudley's mother was stiff, trying to look less pinched and failing miserably. Anita noticed her mother-in-law's discomfort and tried to ease her tension by placing a hand over Petunia's trembling one, but Petunia had only shrugged her support away.

Ginny was a lovely hostess, offering a glass of water or use of the loo after their drive. Dudley had to commend them all: every Potter was polite to his mother, despite her obvious discomfort.

Daisy and Poppy had run off to find their cousins to play immediately upon their arrival, leaving the grown-ups to do their introductions and talk about boring adult things. Petunia's nervous gaze flicked over everything in the house, looking for signs of strangeness. She looked, Dudley though, rather like a dog he and Anita had adopted in their early years as a couple.

Cricket had been a petite little thing, perfect for their first apartment. She was a mix of something fluffy, something yellow, and something with a curly tail and Anita had loved her photo in the paper immediately. They had gone to meet her at the shelter, where she had been sweet and affectionate.

When they brought Cricket home, however, everything had changed. She was terrified of everything. She stared around the house, as though waiting for something or someone to pop out and scare her. Despite their best efforts, Cricket had never truly settled in with them, constantly frightened. The day she bit a friend's daughter had been the day they decided that Cricket simply wasn't happy with them and that their home gave her more stress than peace.

Petunia's constant glancing about the room and restrained trembling was just like Cricket's, and Dudley hoped she wouldn't decide to snap at anyone out of defense.

After the most uncomfortable, and silent, cup of tea Dudley could remember having, Ginny had called down the children. As they put on their coats, Ginny beckoned Petunia over.

It wasn't until they went down the line introducing the children that Dudley realized Daisy had only talked of her time with James and Albus at school, and Poppy hadn't talked at all. His mother didn't know--

"And this is our Lily," Harry said, looking up at Petunia.

Just like that, Petunia cracked. This little girl with fiery red hair and her father's and grandmother's eyes stared up at Petunia and the stiffness crumbled as her eyes welled.

"Lily," she said softly, "It is lovely to meet you."

"You, too!" Lily said, bouncing on her toes. "Daddy said I was named after your sister. I don't have any sisters and Daisy says it's not all it's cracked up to be."

Poppy frowned and kicked her sister, who elbowed her back. Dudley stepped between them, eyes staying on his mother.

"Did you like having a sister?" Lily asked her great aunt.

"I wasn't very good at being a sister. But when I was young, yes. I did. And I very much wish I had mine still."

Petunia's tears slid down her face silently. Harry, Ginny, Dudley, and Anita all watched, not speaking and not moving.

"Well, my daddy says I look like Grammie Lily. Maybe you can try again with me. I heard sisters go to luncheons together when they're grown up. Maybe we could do that!"

Anita chuckled and Petunia dabbed at her eyes.

"Maybe we could." Petunia agreed.

"Right then," Ginny said, trying to give her aunt-in-law a chance to clean herself up as she discreetly took a handkerchief from her purse. "I can floo over with the kids and Harry, you can ride with the Dursleys?"

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

The ride to Burrow had involved a slightly relaxed back and forth between Harry and his aunt, thanks to Lily's ice breaking abilities.

"So, that man who killed your parents?"

"Dead." Harry said, simply.

"Your police finally do their job?" She asked, clearly believing that it was about time they got a wild murderer off the streets.

"Ah, not quite," Harry said with a chuckle.

"Then who killed him?"

"I did."

Everyone grabbed their seats as Dudley swerved.

"You didn't tell me that!" Dudley exclaimed.

"Not a particularly fond memory," Harry said with a shrug.

"Dudley mentioned you're a copper of sorts in...your world." Petunia said, focusing all her years of manners training into to being polite.

"Yes," Harry said. "I'm called an Auror."

"So you trained for it and went after him?"

"Not really. I mean, I trained up in school a bit, but then I took a year off to weaken him. Then there was a battle, he kind of killed me, but I came back, then I was able to kill him."

There was a strained silence.

"And this was when, exactly?" Anita asked.

"May 1998."

"But, you were..you were a _child_!" Petunia exclaimed, surprising Harry if his eyebrows were anything to go on.

To be fair, his eyebrows were about all Dudley could see in the rearview mirror. But they were _very_ surprised eyebrows.

"Didn't have much of a choice," Harry said. "I know it sounds like stuff and nonsense, but there was a prophecy stating that I had to be the one to do it, so I did."

Harry shrugged nonchalantly.

"The alternative was to have let my friends die, and my friends who had already died, die in vain. Besides. I'd just died and it wasn't so bad. Looked like Kings Cross."

Dudley muttered something under his breath and Anita giggled quietly catching some tidbits about preferring a burning eternity to spending more time at Kings Cross.

Petunia was staring out the window, seemingly in shock. Dudley and his parents had known that things were dangerous when they were sent away to Scotland. That had been confirmed by the destroyed home on Privet Drive. What they hadn't realized was that the magical world had apparently relied on a teenager to defeat Wizard-Stalin, or Lord Voldy-thing, or Riddle, as Harry had called him. Dudley couldn't possibly imagine that kind of weight on the shoulders of a child, not much older than his Daisy. A child younger than Teddy Lupin, the lanky boy with the eye-wateringly bright hair.

It baffled Dudley.

It apparently baffled everyone in the car, for it was quiet until they pulled up in front of the Burrow.

~D~D~D~D~D~D~

The cacophony of The Burrow was always a surprise to Dudley. He expected the laughter, the shouts, the calls of names across the house, and yet it was still a shock to the eardrums.

As for his mother, well, Dudley was shocked she hadn't had a stroke the moment the crumbling building vanished to reveal the topsy-turvy home that made up Molly Weasley's domain. After witnessing magic on that large of a scale, Petunia had clutched her chest. When the Weasley roars reached her ears, her mouth had twisted into something so tight and miserable looking that Dudley was surprised her mouth hadn't disappeared entirely.

However, he had to give her credit. His mother did not come off as particularly loquacious, but she was polite, she shook hands, she smiled tightly; in short, she tried.

And that was far more than he would have anticipated merely a day prior.

As he watched his mother suffer through a conversation with Arthur Weasley on his most recent discovery (paper clips), Dudley smiled. It was a strange world they'd found themselves in, but even the most reluctant of them were integrating.

Slowly.

Painfully.

But they were doing it anyway.

 **A/n: I am constantly surprised at the popularity of this story. I do hope you all enjoyed the brief trip down memory lane. PLEASE please review. That's what's kept this train a'rollin**


	10. Trying and Remembering

The Spring term raced by in a flurry of letters from Daisy and extracurricular activities for Poppy. The dinners with the Potters were intermittent as Ginny's job called her hither and yon for Quidditch games and Dudley was promoted to a management position which meant more time at work.

Poppy communicated the most with her sister, still pouring over every letter as though she could absorb her sister's experiences through the paper. Anita had found them hiding beneath Poppy's pillow whilst doing the wash in February, along with a relatively straight stick that Poppy had apparently tried to carve a bit of whorls on.

In March, Dudley found her in her room, focusing on her stuffed elephant so intently that she was quivering. He could hear her whispering under her breath, "Move, move, come on Ellie, move." He frowned and backed out of the room without alerting her to his presence.

In April, Anita found her trying to talk to a garden snake. She remembered their conversation with Harry the previous night at dinner and smiled sadly.

"Did you have to learn French at school, Cousin Harry?" She had asked.

"No, no, though most of our spells are Latin. We never took Latin. I imagine they didn't want us trying to make our own spells. Dangerous game, that."

"Do you speak French from your time at Muggle school?" Anita asked.

"Nope. Not a lick. Can't speak any other languages, embarrassing I know." Harry laughed.

"Well," Ginny said, looking at him with her fiery eyebrows raised.

"That doesn't count!" Harry said, "I was cursed with that ability."

"You were cursed with a language?" Anita inquired.

"Yes and no. I could speak Parseltongue for a time."

The Dursleys stared, confused.

"Right, Parseltongue is snake language." Harry clarified, which didn't clarify anything for the Dursleys.

"He could speak to snakes." Ginny said, helping.

"Blimey," Dudley said. "Might be a nifty trick, especially at a...HANG ON A SECOND!"

Harry grinned.

"THE ZOO!"

"Yes?" Harry said, eyes full of laughter.

"YOU SET THAT THING ON ME!" Dudley howled, his family looking baffled.

"Not really," Harry chuckled. "I made the glass disappear on accident, but I didn't tell him to bother you. I just asked where he was from, and he thanked me as he left. He slithered near you as payback for the tapping on the glass."

"Daddy hates snakes," Poppy said, solemnly.

Dudley's face was a shade puce that would have made his father proud.

"Do you know how much time I spent in therapy to deal with my fear of snakes? That and the tail nearly put me in an asylum by my twelfth birthday." Dudley said, breathing hard at the thought.

"The tail?" Anita asked, looking confused.

Dudley's eyes widened along with Harry's grin.

"Oh, ho ho, tell me she doesn't know." Harry said, grinning almost evilly.

"Of course not! I couldn't bloody well tell her with the Statuate of Secrecy and what have you. And you needn't tell her either. I don't want to talk about it. I forbid it!"

"Oh, forbid it, do you?" Anita said, looking bewildered. "Now I simply must insist. What happened, Harry?"

"Have you heard the story of how I discovered I was a wizard?"

"No," Anita and Poppy said.

"Well, twas a dark and stormy night and--Don't look at me like that, Gin. It was--and Uncle Vernon had been running away from the owls for quite some time. The letters were overwhelming at the house, you see…"

Harry had his audience enraptured. Even Ginny and Lily, who had clearly heard the story before, listened to every word.

"...And then, Hagrid sees Dudley eating the birthday cake and points this pink umbrella at his derriere and right through his pyjama pants pokes a curly little pig tail."

Poppy and Lily were howling with mirth whilst Ginny was wiping tears of laughter from her face. Anita's jaw had dropped as she stared at her husband, who was an alarming shade of red at this point.

"What happened to your tail, Daddy? Do you still have it?" Poppy giggled.

"No, I do not." Dudley said, "My parents took me to a special, discrete clinic where it was removed."

"Oh, Dudley." Anita said, "You told me that was from a skating accident!"

Harry laughed and Dudley mumbled a response.

"I'm with Dudley," Ginny said, "I don't know that I'd have ever admitted to the truth. I am sorry you've become the butt of tonight's joke tonight, Dudley. You probably think we're awful and will refuse to come back."

Dudley released the long suffering sigh of the teased, "Well, it's out now. That's the last secret I had from my wife. Thanks, Potter."

Harry laughed and slapped him on the shoulder.

"Secrets from the wife don't work mate. Last time my wife had a secret, she let a giant snake loose in the castle."

Dudley's eyes looked panicked again.

"Don't worry," Ginny reassured him, "Harry killed it."

"Is there anything you didn't do while at Hogwarts, Harry?" Anita asked.

"I didn't have a boring school year," Harry said with a cheeky grin.

"Given the stories we've heard thus far, I've never been so glad my little girl is having a 'boring school year'. Well, comparatively."

"She's lucky," Harry agreed. "And I've heard this is now Professor McLaggen's third year teaching Defense, so she shouldn't have the turnover we had. Boring school years for my children make me a very happy man."

"It's funny," Anita said, "Despite how different a magical school is for Daisy, the normalcy of hoping your children have good professors and don't get into trouble is comforting."

The parents all agreed with nods and smiles. The moment was broken with a squeal from Poppy.

"MAMA, LOOK! The dessert is flying to the table! I wanted it and it flew!"

The parents all looked bewildered, then cautiously thrilled for her. All except Harry, who watched Lily, never breaking eye contact with the pudding.

 **A/n Y'all, I'm so sorry for the delay. I was sick as a dog, then my better half finally returned from his deployment and THEN we adopted a sweet dog from the shelter last week. It's been a whirlwind of a few weeks, but thank you to ALL of my new readers and commenters. I'm thrilled to have you all with me on this journey that started as a 3 chapter fling and has taken on a life of its own.** **As always, please please review. The recent influx was what got me running again, so thank you. Keep em coming!**


	11. Another Unexpected Guest

**A/N: Hi guys! It's been a whirlwind, but today's my birthday and I decided to celebrate with a little more about Poppy! I hope you enjoy this pop-up from an old character and, as always, please please please review!**

The week before her sister returned from Hogwarts, Poppy Elizabeth Dursley turned eleven years old. Most children would spend their birthday celebrating with friends, visiting the zoo, eating sweeties, or ripping open presents.

Poppy Dursley did none of these things.

Poppy Dursley stared out the window, eagerly awaiting a visitor who, by sunset, had not arrived.

"Darling, come and have some dinner," Anita said, touching her daughter lightly on the shoulder. "I've made Yorkshire puddings, your favorite."

"I don't want to miss the owl," Poppy said, never taking her eyes from the window.

Anita sighed quietly, knowing already what her youngest hadn't realized. There would be no owl. There would be no Hogwarts. Not for Poppy.

Then, there was the sound of a car backfiring and Anita shrieked.

A man, perhaps a few years younger than herself, appeared on the lawn and made his way to the door. Poppy squealed in delight while Anita looked at Dudley, who had run into the room, with eyes agog.

Had they somehow missed the signs in Poppy? No, it couldn't be. With Daisy, they tried to rationalize the strange with the mundane. With Poppy, Dudley and Anita had searched for any sign of magic.

They were certain that she was not magical, and had planned to sit down with her after her birthday dinner to explain. While discussing this matter on her birthday would not be pleasant, their attempts to broach the topic previously had been shut down with a simple, "We can't possibly know until I'm eleven" speech.

And yet, there was a man knocking upon the front door, who had just apparated into their front yard.

"Hello," Poppy said politely, beaming at the man.

"Hullo," the man said, offering a hand for her to shake. "I'm Dennis Creevey. You must be Poppy!"

Poppy confirmed his guess and looked to her parents for approval before opening the door to Mr. Creevey.

Dennis was a lanky man with mousy brown hair and a wide smile. He introduced himself to the Dursleys and they invited him in. He took a seat on the loveseat and looked at Poppy.

"It is your eleventh birthday today, correct Miss Dursley?"

"Yes it is," Poppy said, practically vibrating.

"I'm going to start this off with the difficult so that we can spend the rest of our time together discussing the good, is that alright?"

Poppy stilled.

"I suppose." She said, suddenly looking concerned.

"I imagine you spent today waiting on an owl, correct?"

"Yes," said Poppy.

"I am sorry to say it, Poppy, but there will be no owl. Now, don't be sad. I know you will, but do try. It is incredibly rare for a muggle family to produce two magical children. In fact, my brother and I were the first muggle-born siblings to both be magical in over a century. We were the exception, not the rule."

"But, I tried!" Poppy said, lower lip wobbly dangerously. "I tried so hard."

"Have you ever tried to have red hair?" Dennis asked.

"No," Poppy said, surprised.

"How about having brown eyes? Or green?"

"No, that's silly." Poppy said, now looking frustrated.

"This is no different. You know what DNA is, correct?"

"Of course," she scoffed. "I'm _eleven_."

"Then you know that some things are hardwired. Magic is that way as well. Now, do you think that people with blue eyes can see better?"

"No."

"How about people with green eyes?"

"No," Poppy giggled.

"You can do many, many things, Poppy," Dennis said, looking her straight in the eyes. "The magical world is frequently behind in technology because our magic makes it do wonky things. My brother and I worked together in school to find older technology that wouldn't be affected by the magic, and I've since started working with the Muggle Affairs Department at the Ministry of Magic to help get modern amenities into the magical world."

Poppy nodded, doing her best to understand it all.

"What I'm trying to say, Poppy, is that having muggles and muggleborns who know about magic is very useful. You and I, we get to see both worlds from the inside. That makes us important. That makes us valuable. You do not have that magical gene, but that doesn't mean you cannot be a part of that world."

Anita and Dudley watched as Poppy processed it all. Her eyes had welled up at the beginning of the conversation, but now she was thinking through the alternative to being magic; the possibilities that came from being a muggle in the know about magic. It was something she hadn't considered, and it was clear she was intrigued with the idea of being involved with magic, even if she wasn't magic herself.

"Can I use magical things?" Poppy asked, finally.

"It depends on the item. A wand would just be a stick for you, but potions? Charmed items? Absolutely."

"I like building things," Poppy said slowly, "And my teacher says I'm quite good at coding on the computer. Do wizards have computers?"

"Not yet," Dennis said.

"I could make a magic computer," Poppy said firmly.

"I don't see why not," Dennis said, smiling at her now.

"Yeah. I'll make a magic computer."

"I can't wait," said Dennis.

~D~D~D~D~D~

Dudley and Anita were shocked at the change in their daughter after Dennis Creevey's visit. She went from daydreaming of Hogwarts and playing with sticks to focusing on her studies, especially anything to do with computers.

"I need to see how the computer reacts around magic," Poppy informed her parents over pork chops one night. "Do you think Aunt Ginny would be okay with me bringing the tablet to the Burrow?"

"Are you willing to share it?" Anita asked, remembering the times when Poppy's friends had taken over the iPad, ignoring her, and Poppy had whinged endlessly.

"Oh yes," Poppy said, quickly. " _I_ don't want to use it, I want to watch _them_ use it! I need to see what their magic does to it."

"Right," Dudley said, looking puzzled. "Naturally."

"My teacher said that electromagnetic pulses can stop electronics from working, but they can be protected with a simple metallic bag to block it. I think magic is like the pulse."

"Err, yeah," Dudley agreed. "Just like an electro-pulse."

"I thought I could code magic into the computer, but if I can block the magic from getting in, maybe the iPad will work!"

Anita and Dudley both nodded, sneaking smiles at one another. They had anticipated her eleventh birthday with concern for the news they knew was coming, but her bounce back was a heartening sight.

"Could we visit Uncle Harry's on Saturday?" Poppy asked, excitedly.

"Perhaps after we pick up your sister," Anita said.

"THE PLATFORM!" Poppy shrieked. "Can we go early? I bet there's LOADS of magic there and it would definitely make my iPad go funny. I need a pulse bag to see if it helps…"

And she was off to look up EMP protection bags on her tablet.

"Well," Anita said, "If she manages this, just imagine: we'll have a magical Bill Gates in the family. I hope she won't mind supporting us in our old age."

Dudley chuckled as he sat back in his armchair and smiled.

Everything was going to be okay with his girls.


	12. Making It Work

"LET GO POPPY, IT'S MINE!"

"I JUST NEED TO SEE IT FOR - URRRGHHH- ONE SECOND!"

His girls were going to drive him to the madhouse, Dudley was certain of it.

"Are all girls like this?" he asked Anita, rubbing his temples vigorously.

"I didn't have sisters, love. I'm not certain." Anita patted him on the shoulder and passed him his tea, two lumps of sugar already stirred in. "But I know that my friends who despised their sisters as children grew to love them as adults. So, you can have hope for the future."

"The only thing I'll have in the future is hearing aids," Dudley grumbled.

"Mummy, tell Poppy to leave my wand alone!" Daisy trundled down the stairs, sounding like a small elephant.

"But I need to put it near my iPad again! I think the aluminium kept the screen wobbles away!"

Anita rubbed her eyes. It had been like this all summer. There was only 10 days left until September first, and then Daisy would be back at school and Poppy could focus on her football and robotics clubs.

And she and Dudley could have some peace.

Anita put up a hand, and both girls quieted, glowering at one another.

"Poppy, you know you shouldn't touch the wand. Daisy, you can't use it at the house yet, so it wouldn't hurt you to let it sit on the desk near the electronics, untouched. However, neither of this matters as the Potters will arrive any minute to carpool to the Alley."

Daisy harrumphed and stomped back up the stairs to get the list that had arrived the night before. Poppy brightened at the thought of going to Diagon Alley and immediately asked if she could bring her "phone" (a retired thing, unconnected to the mobile service, but still able to play games.)

"I will bring your phone and keep it in my bag. You can have it while you wait for your sister to get new robes. It will not be used at the Leaky or whilst your wandering the Alley. I don't want you getting lost or running into people, understand?"

"Yes, mum!" Poppy said brightly, sprinting up the stairs and only tripping once on the way.

~D~D~D~D~D~

If someone had told Dudley Dursley even a year ago that he would be sitting in a car with Harry, talking about the Chudley Cannon's surprising Quidditch win last weekend, Dudley would have pointed them towards an asylum.

And yet, that was exactly what he was doing.

"Ronald is convinced that the Cannons will make it into the finals this year," Ginny said, rolling her eyes. "One win and instantly visions of glory dance through his head. Barmy, he is."

"You have to admit, that feint at the end was a smart move," Dudley said.

"It was," said Harry, "Though I did something similar in my school days."

"Oh yes," Ginny said in a pompous voice, "let us never forget that we have the great Harry Potter, youngest seeker in a century, triwizard tournament winner, dragon vanquisher, Dark Lord defeater in our midst."

"Ginny," Anita said quietly, "Didn't you play professionally?"

Ginny laughed.

"Yes, yes," Harry agreed, "To my wife, the glory."

Dudley and Anita chuckled with them as the kids squealed, "We're here!"

Trunk after trunk was pulled from the boot of the car by the children as Harry cast what he called a "notice-me-not" charm subtly.

"Keeps the Muggles from wondering how we fit all those trunks in the back. It's the little things that can get our world outed."

Dudley thought that his pig tail was a rather large thing that could have outed them, but perhaps the Ministry had heard and covered that up as well. He wasn't sure how to determine whether or not the Ministry was "in" on the little adventures of his childhood with Harry.

"Look, Mummy, it's working!" Poppy squealed as they made their way onto the platform. Dudley had never seen a child so excited to see their digital device go wiggly and wonky.

"Watch THIS!" Poppy folded a bit of aluminium around the back and edges of the device and suddenly, the wiggles were gone and the square application icons reappeared.

Dudley stared, impressed at his child's ingenuity.

"It's like magic," Poppy said, to no one in particular.

"Perhaps we put her in a coding club?" Anita said quietly.

"No, no, that's not coding, love. That's engineering."

"Engineering club then," Anita said.

~D~D~D~D~D~

As it turned out, computer engineering clubs for adolescents were hard to come by in Little Whingeing. Petunia, however, had found a "My First Computer" kit in an online shop and Poppy had taken to building electronics like a fish took to water.

"Look, Mummy! I added more RAM and look how fast it goes now!"

"Yes, yes. Very fast," Anita said. Poppy had begun to speak an entirely new language consisting of words like "RAM" and "Gigs" and "SSD" and Anita, whose computer abilities covered word processing and not much else, was baffled by it. Poppy, however, was happier than a Kelpie in water.

Poppy and Daisy had made up via owlpost and Daisy had sent her sister all of the notes she could find on magical interactions with electricity.

These days, Poppy's room was a mess of wires and chips and drives, little green plastic thingies were strewn everywhere. Dudley's bellow could have woken the neighborhood when he'd accidentally found one with his foot.

Poppy had apologized to her father, and whisked the offending piece up to her bedroom where she spent even more time than usual. If it weren't for the joy that Poppy seemed to get from her constant tinkering, Anita would be concerned that her daughter was still depressed over her distinct lack of magic.

And she was, though not nearly as badly as she could have been. Dennis Creevey had been a blessing in that at least. However, Poppy had been so certain of her powers after Lily's attempt at helping, that the lack thereof was still disappointing. She channeled that disappointment into her hard drives and Dudley and Anita did their best to support her and let her know that just because she was different from her sister did not mean she was not as capable: her talents just lay in other places.

A sharp pinch to the foot had Anita hopping across the living room on one foot to remove the offending item, breaking her from her thoughts. She glanced down to find the perpetrator.

There, on the floor, was another bit of green plastic wrapped in some thin metallic material.

Anita sighed.

"POPPY!"

 **A/N: Sorry for the delay guys! Crazy crazy couple of weeks. Thank you, as always, for your patience. PLEASE please please review!**


	13. Petunia's Past

**A/N: I know, I know, this was a long wait. Work and wedding planning may be the death of me. However, SevenBees reminded me of my promise not to go too too long between updates aaand, here we are. Time will move a little faster now, so be prepared. We are beyond the halfway point and I expect this to be 20 chapters or less. I hope you enjoy!**

 **As always, reviews are my favorite. I appreciate every single one. ~ Pooka**

As the years went on, Daisy learned more and more about the Wizarding World, and her family along with her. Dudley heard about exams called HAWKS or DUCKS or something like that, and was thrilled when Daisy got nothing but Outstandings, which was the highest a student could get. Harry apparently had _not_ received straight Os, though Hermione Weasley had. Dudley had never been more proud of his eldest girl.

He did his best to brag about her at work, though their story of her boarding school always stuck in his throat. It reminded him of Saint Brutus's. Again and again the memories of his parents pummeled his thoughts.

Magic was strange. Alien. Quite literally the thing of fairy tales. Wrapping his brain around it would've been near impossible without Harry. And yet, his mother had grown up with a witch as well. She should've been able to understand Harry's magic, should've understood that this wasn't something he could control.

Dudley had only known the Potter pack for a few years, and yet he loved them all. James, Al, Lily: they were his family. They weren't his nephews and niece, but they may as well have been. He couldn't imagine turning his back on them as his family had done to Harry.

It took a long time, longer than it should have, to sit down and talk to his mother about it. She'd grown fond of the young Lily and doted on the child as she did her own grandchildren. It was only then that Dudley felt comfortable confronting her over her actions.

"I was jealous, at first," Petunia admitted, a glass of port in her hands. "I couldn't understand how my younger sister had this ability that I didn't. Then she found a friend, the man Al's named after. The two of them had this special club that I couldn't be in because I wasn't like them. Lily had been my best friend. My oldest friend. My only friend."

She sighed and took a sip.

"And then she was suddenly different. One day she made a flower fly. It was beautiful, but it should've been impossible. I wanted to do it too, but no matter how hard I tried, I just...couldn't. When she met Severus, I was officially the odd one out. They could play with their magic and I had never wanted anything so much as to be like them. I even wrote Dumbledore to ask for a place at Hogwarts."

Dudley gaped at her and his mother chuckled.

"Yes, I know. But then Lily went off to school without me. I met your father whilst I was preparing for Uni and I had to keep my sister's secret. I told him the same cover story my parents told and I hated it. I hated the lying. And with every lie I think I grew to resent her. It was worse than being jealous. It broke us."

Shoulders slumping, Petunia set her glass down.

"Telling Vernon was a relief. I was given the clearance to do so after the wedding. I almost didn't want to, for fear he would think me strange as well. But eventually I just broke down and told him that my sister was a freak and I was nothing like her and I hoped he would understand. I was so angry with her, with what she was, and I'd kept it inside for ages. I couldn't tell me parents, they would've scolded me and Vernon was my outlet. Everything boiled out and it was mean. Cruel, even. He was so understanding of my anger, encouraged it even."

His mother shook her head, picked up the glass, and took a sip. It fortified her.

"I let myself revel in his encouragement of my anger, and I stayed there for a very long time. Then we had you, and you were lovely and normal and sweet. Then our parents died, and Lily married, and then she disappeared. I thought it was for the best. I was- I was glad."

She knocked back the rest of the glass, visibly trying to push back her tears.

"I was glad," she said on a whisper, "Actually glad that my sister had disappeared."

Dudley moved onto the couch beside her and hugged her into his shoulder where the tears began to escape.

"And then she d-died. And that boy that represented everything she'd been, everything her husband and her friends had been, was sitting on my doorstep with a letter from that miserable man, Dumbledore. And he told me that _magic_ ," she spit the word, "had gotten her killed."

He rubbed her shoulder, consoling the woman who had consoled him countless times as a child.

"That little boy was why she died. And I hated him for it, even more than I had hated her. This infant had killed my sister and I had to look at his face, so like his father's, every single day, remembering the thing that killed her. The man who gave her this child that killed her."

Petunia was openly sobbing now. Dudley wasn't sure he'd ever seen his mother ever lose control so completely. She was the ever proper English lady, but here she sat crying with an empty glass of port.

"And then I met Little Lily and the horrible little boy I so resented gave me a sweet face that was _my_ Lily. My sweet, sister Lily. And Harry forgave me. He forgave everything. I don't know how, or why, but he did."

That was the last of her talking for the night. Dudley held her as she cried and cried.

The next day, Dudley picked Daisy up from the station for her Christmas hols. She struggled a bit after the hug lasted longer than usual, but she didn't notice the tears in her hair. It was for the best, Dudley thought. Little girls should think their fathers invincible until they're old enough to know better.


	14. You Could Change the World

**A/N: My sincerest apologies for the delay in chapters, my dearest readers! Since the last updated, I've had a bachelorette party at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, I got married to the most incredible man, and I've gotten a new job. It's been a wild few months. However! I am so so so glad that you have continued to follow Daisy's journey and I am excited to share this new chapter with you all. ~Pooka**

"Dad, _please_ stop."

"But, there's something on your face, Daisy." Dudley insisted, reaching for her face to rub it away.

"Leave it!" Daisy whinged.

"I think it's make-up, darling," Anita chided.

" _Make-up_? Why on earth do you need make-up?"

"NO REASON!" Daisy cried, shrilly.

"It's to impress Damien Jordan," Poppy said with a mischievous grin.

"POPPY!" Daisy whinged again.

"Daisy's got a cru-ush, Daisy's got a cru-ush!" Poppy sang.

"Girls," Anita said sternly.

"Who is this Dameron bloke?" Dudley asked, his face beginning to turn red.

"It's Damien, Daddy!" Poppy corrected.

"POPPY!" Daisy shouted.

"GIRLS!" Anita shouted, louder.

Daisy glared at her sister, who was grinning widely.

"Daisy, run upstairs and wipe that off your face. You can wear makeup when you learn to apply it correctly. Poppy, do stop teasing. We have less than ten minutes before we need to head to the station." Anita sighed.

Marching up the stairs with a huff, Daisy disappeared whilst Poppy fell to the floor cackling.

"Must you?" Dudley asked his youngest.

"Did you SEE her face? I've seen clowns with less cakey foundation. That was marvelous!" Poppy said, crying with laughter.

"And how do you think you looked when you tried to wear makeup for that Alistair boy at your school, Pops?" Anita asked.

Poppy stopped laughing immediately.

"Uncalled for, mother." Poppy said, "I'm going to get my tablet."

As Poppy stomped up the stairs, Anita and Dudley both sighed.

"How long do the teenaged years last?" Dudley asked, not for the first time.

"About seven human years, which is about a hundred in parenting years."

"That's what I thought."

~D~D~D~D~D~

The ride to the station was quiet as the girls were glued to their tablets. Poppy had created an app to help process Arithmancy problems, and was in the midst of converting Daisy's textbooks to e-books so that they could be searched and highlighted without damaging the actual books.

The Spellbox, as Poppy had dubbed her protective case, was still in the early phases so Daisy's tablet wasn't working perfectly at school, and charging was still an issue due to the lack of outlets at Hogwarts. Daisy had turned the legal age to use magic right before the summer, and had tried various levels of sparks to try and charge old second hand phones they'd found at CEX, but after realizing the girls had spent all of the money they'd earned at their summer jobs at the computer exchange, Anita had put a stop to it. It was likely for the best since Daisy had fried every single phone.

"Bloody platform," Dudley muttered as Daisy navigated Kings Cross with her trunk.

"Just think, love. This is the last year you'll have to manage. Then you'll never have to walk through another wall again," Anita said with a smile.

"And never would still be too soon," Dudley harrumphed.

"It's not that bad, Dad," Poppy said, not looking up from her phone. "It's not like it hurts."

Dudley muttered something under his breath and Anita laughed.

"Well, let's go! Only ten minutes until the train leaves," Anita said, hurrying them all towards the bricks between platforms 9 and 10.

"Poppy!" shouted Lily.

"Hi, Lily!" replied Poppy.

"Daisy!" said Rose.

"Rosie!" said Daisy.

"Daisy!" said Lily.

"Lily!" said Daisy.

"Hugo!" shouted Hugo.

"Albus!" shouted Al.

The girls rolled their eyes as Al and Hugo high fived.

"Come on now, all of you! Get on the train before we're stuck with the lot of you for the Fall," Mrs. Weasley chided her grandchildren.

"Wouldn't be too awful," Hugo said.

"Yeah! We could take Grandpa Arthur's car to school like dad and Uncle Ron!" said Albus, a little too excited.

"Don't you even tease with that," Molly scolded. "I sent your father a Howler after that, and I have no issue doing the same to you, boys."

The boys snickered. "Uncle George sent Freddy a Howler over the stolen toilet seat he sent home. Didn't sound all that angry though. Called it inspired, said he was a chip off the old block. Aunt Angelina didn't sound too happy though. You could hear her in the background."

Molly rolled her eyes and just gestured for them to get on the train.

"Bye mum! Bye dad!" Daisy cried as she waved from the window, her Head Girl badge shining on her chest.

"Have a good term, sweetheart!" Anita replied.

"Make us proud, poppet!" Dudley shouted gruffly, with a wave.

"Would you like to come by for a spot of tea?" Molly asked Anita as the train pulled away from the station.

"I believe I would. Are you coming with, Poppy, or are you going home with your father?" Anita asked, turning to her youngest.

"I'd like to talk to Grandpa Arthur," Poppy said with a grin. With the girls having no grandparents on their mother's side and only Petunia on their father's, they'd adopted Molly and Arthur as surrogate grandparents and called them such.

"I'm sure you would, dearie," Molly said, a twinkle in her eye.

"I have a question about plugs."

~D~D~D~D~D~

"That might do it!" Arthur said, a grin on his face. He and Poppy stared at the battery they had built, which glowed a faint green.

It had been a long afternoon's worth of work, but together, they had managed to put together an enlarged crystal that absorbed excess environmental magic from any spells in the near vicinity. Arthur had then used a combination of a Permanent Sticking Charm and a Conduction Charm on an outlet. The result was an opalescent white crystal the size of a large owl with an outlet embedded in the side, quite incongruously.

Arthur cast a Notice-Me-Not Charm on the crystal and brought it with them into the kitchen for a bite to eat. Poppy knew it was in the corner of the kitchen beside a set of needles knitting an olive green jumper. However, she couldn't see it. Strange, magic. Even after six years of learning about it from Daisy, it still managed to surprise her.

Once she and Arthur had finished their scones and clotted cream, Poppy's favorite, Poppy thanked Molly profusely whilst Arthur picked up the crystal and they made their way back to the shed.

With the crystal now glowing a cool green thanks to the residual magic hanging about the kitchen after Molly had spent the afternoon cooking. Poppy took a moment to admire it while Arthur clapped her on the back.

"Shall we give it a go?" Arthur asked, giddy with excitement.

"Yes, please!" Poppy said, pulling her charger from her bag.

Arthur slipped on a pair of dragon hide gloves, "Just in case, always best to be safe" he joked, and plugged the charger into the outlet. When nothing explosive happened, they both grinned. There was a slight spark when Arthur plugged the charger into her tablet and Poppy's heart leapt into her throat. Her mother would go positively mental if Poppy fried her tablet.

Much to both of their delights, instead of the screen going fuzzy or burnt, a small battery with a lightning bolt appeared and the tablet began to charge.

"We did it," Poppy said in an awed voice.

"You did it," Arthur told her, patting her shoulder. "You could change our world with this."

 **A/N: What's this? TWO Author's Notes? Yes. I didn't want to tell you this at the beginning, but I do believe this is the penultimate chapter. This little project was only ever intended to last a few chapters, five at the most. I'm so glad it's become popular and well-loved. Thank you to the Bs for loving my story and inspiring me to get around to wrapping this story up. I appreciate you all. Til next time! ~Pooka**


	15. A Very Good Job

It was bitterly cold, the wind biting into any skin it could find like needles, but Dudley didn't notice. There were a lot of feelings inside of him, all of them so consuming that he hadn't the ability to spare a thought for the weather.

"Here, darling. I think." Anita cocked her head at the red telephone box, as if expecting it to do something.

"So we just..."

"Get in." She said, not sounding terribly certain.

Dudley stepped into the telephone box and Anita joined him. Dudley thanked the stars that he had worked a touch harder than his father to maintain his weight. Dudley was still a sizable man, but no where near as broad as his father had been.

Carefully, he dialed 6-2-4-4-2. Magic.

Promptly, a voice came over the phone and the next thing he knew, Dudley and Anita had badges with their names on them and were descending beneath the streets of London. Far beneath the streets of London.

Dudley did his best not to let the collywobbles win.

When they stepped out of the phone booth gratefully, a woman in bright blue robes bounced towards them.

"Papa! Mum! You made it!" Daisy gave them both a hug and started walking speedily towards a set of old style elevators.

"Poppy's been sweating up a storm. I think she forgot her coat this morning, but it doesn't seem to matter. Arthur and Molly are already there, along with Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny and the rest!"

Anita and Dudley did their best to keep up with their eldest whilst trying to not gawk about at the place they had entered. There was a large gold fountain with magical creatures and the hall was lined with tall fireplaces that belched out green flames and sooty witches and wizards at random intervals.

"They set up a dais just over here," Daisy said, over her shoulder. "C'mon now, they're already late to start!"

Doing his best not to let his lack of cardio show, Dudley tried, and failed, to regulate his huffing and puffing.

Daisy directed them to two purple velvet chairs with their names upon them, before making her way to the rest of the Ministry employees in their matching blue robes.

An unremarkable gentleman stepped up to the front of the dais, pointed a wand at his throat and mumbled what must have been a spell. His unremarkable-ness disappeared as his deep, contrabass voice filled the hall.

"Today is an auspicious day for the British Ministry for Magic. Today, we make history with our first ever Muggle researcher in our employ. We would like you all to welcome Miss Poppy Dursley."

There was a smattering of polite applause from the ministry folks and rambunctious whoops and hollers from the red headed group behind them.

"Miss Dursley has managed to accomplish what was previously thought impossible: the integration of Muggle technology within the Magical world. Not only has she invented, and patented, a unique protector for devices to prevent magical disturbances, but she has also created a reusable energy source that will bring our world into the 21st century. It is through Miss Potter's innovation and creativity that we are able to begin a new era of Magic. Miss Dursley will be working across multiple departments in order to--"

The rest of Kingsley Shacklebolt's speech was promptly forgotten by Dudley Dursley. He didn't give a tick for the implementation of technology in their world. The only thought in his mind was of the pride he felt for the daughter, once devastated at her lack of magic, who had risen above and worked with magic any way.

It had been a long hard road. Poppy had attended uni to study computer engineering, but had struggled in her development courses as her best developments were seemingly useless to the non-magic folk. She had worked for a doomsday tech start up who considered her work ideal for protecting technology in the event of a catastrophic event, and that had given her the capital to start PD Industries: an innocuously named front for her magic-resistant devices. at just 25, Poppy was running a brisk business in both the magical and non magical worlds, selling to wizards and doomsday preppers alike.

Dudley could not have been more proud.

Suddenly, there were applause all around and Dudley was pulled from his musings. A hundred magical folk in their work robes were on their feet, applauding the accomplishments of a Muggle.

Dudley stood with them and a tear came to his eye, wishing that his mother could have been there.

Petunia had spent the majority of her life angry at the thought of her little sister's special powers, which had somehow skipped Petunia. In the end, she saw how different things could have been if she had embraced her sister, instead of resenting her.

In truth, Dudley was glad his mother had taken the path she had, for he would not be here without it, but he was pleased all the same that she had some to some sort of peace over her animosity with her sister, and he hoped they had reunited in the afterlife.

Dudley wrapped an arm around Anita, who leaned up to whisper, "We did a good job."

Yes, Dudley thought. Even though it was sheer dumb luck, they had, in his humble opinion, done a very good job.

 **A/N: Thank you everyone who followed this!! I appreciate all of you so so much.**


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